Supreme Court fiat to Centre on Lokpal

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today sought to know from the Centre what steps have been taken for the appointment of Lokpal as per the amended rules.

Chief Justice T S Thakur, said that the Attorney General must inform the court about the steps taken for the appointment of Lokpal.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur, said that the Attorney General must inform the court about the steps taken for the appointment of Lokpal and if there is any difficulty then the court should be apprised about it.

The bench, also comprising Justices R Banumathi and U U Lalit, posted the matter for further hearing on July 19.

The bench was hearing a matter filed by NGO Common Cause which sought a direction to the Centre to make the appointment of Chairperson and Members of the Lokpal as per the amended rules framed under Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013.

The NGO in its plea filed through advocate Prashant Bhushan also sought a direction to the Centre to ensure that the procedure for selecting the Chairperson and Members of the Lokpal must be transparent as envisaged under the Act.

“The inaction of the government in making the appointment of Lokpal is arbitrary and unreasonable and hence, violative of Article 14 of the Constitution,” the amended petition of the NGO said.

It said that one of the ways to ensure total transparency in the selection process is that the panel of persons to be prepared by the Search Committee for consideration by the Selection Committee must be placed in public domain.

“…on website before final selection of Chairperson and Members of the Lokpal is made so that public must know who all are going to be considered for the said selection and if there is any information with anybody which makes any particular name in the said panel unsuitable for selection as Chairperson or Member must be placed before the Selection Committee,” the plea said.